The pleasant places for their Silver, Nettles shall possess them; Thornes shall be in their Tabernacles

The pleasant places for their Silver, Nettles shall possess them; Thornes shall be in their Tabernacles.

The word that is translated pleasant places for Silver, it is, the desire of their silver.

First, it may have reference to this, to their furniture of silver, that nettles shall grow where they wear their fine silver things, their fine cupboards of plate, and household stuff that they did take so much delight in, as in Lamentations 1:7. Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction, and of her miseries, all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old. Mark but these two things from this text, Jerusalem in the days of her affliction and misery. My Brethren, there may be days of affliction, and yet no days of misery, the Saints may meet with days of afflictions, but not of misery; the wicked when they meet with days of affliction, they meet with days of misery; but the thing I note that text for is this, They shall remember all the pleasant things that they had. Oh! they shall think then, what fine cupboards of plate they were wont to have, and all their fine things; so here, here's a threatening that there should nettles grow in the very place where their fine household stuff stood, such a place of the house where such a fine cupboard of plate was, all shall be so demolished that perhaps Nettles and Thorns shall grow there.

And then secondly, the places where they hid their Silver, as you know in times of War men will hide their Silver, and they think they may come back again and have them, but says God, you shall go far enough from them, and I make no question but another generation may find treasures of silver in the countries, in the midst of Nettle bushes and Thorn bushes.

Thirdly, it is their delightful houses adorned with silver, that were so glorious to their eyes, all now is gone says God, and Nettles and Thorns shall grow up, they shall inherit, so the word is; you hope to leave these brave houses to your children to inherit, but now says God I have other heirs for your houses than your children, I have Thorns and Nettles to inherit them, for so the word is in the Hebrew, They shall inherit. It's a lamentable spectacle to see places where fair buildings have been that now Nettles and Thorns should grow, as it is like to be if these Wars hold in divers places of this Kingdom, that was the complaint heretofore of Troy, There was corn grew where once Troy was, it was made a plowed field, but to have Nettles grow it is worse, for where the plow goes there are inhabitants, but where Nettles and Thorns are that's a desolate wilderness. Travellers tell us, that in many places of Germany, when they go by where brave buildings were, there's nothing now but bushes and nettles; the Lord deliver us from such a heavy stroke as this is, this is threatened in Isaiah 32:13. Upon the land of my people shall come up briers and thorns, yea upon all the houses of joy in the joyous City. Would it not be a sad spectacle to see such a City as this to have the buildings overthrown and to have Nettles and thorns in your fairest streets come up? Yet sin is such a ruinous thing as this. And then in Isaiah 34:13, Thorns shall come up in her Palaces, Nettles and Brambles in the Fortresses thereof, and it shall be a habitation for Dragons, and a Court for Owls; the Owls they shall keep Court there. In our Courts we know what abundance of sin was there, now the Owls shall keep Court there instead of these Courtiers that lived so bravely there formerly. Oh my Brethren! sin is a leprosy that infects the doors of our houses: there's a notable story in 2 Kings 25:9. It said of Nebuchadnezzar, That he burnt the House of the Lord, and the King's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire. There is a great deal of sin committed in great men's houses, and at this day how have the great men of the Land almost in all places showed a spirit of malignity against the work of Reformation, Oh how just with God is it that the houses of these great men should suffer; this that here is threatened in my text, and many of them have been spoiled already, and if God give them not hearts speedily to see the evil of their ways it's very probable that within a few years this text of mine may be fulfilled upon them.